Here is some feedback and nice photos from photographer and kitesurfer Charles Didcott, with himself and some friends riding the new C4 7m and 5m in some big swell at Witsands, Cape Town.
We have reserved the better and bigger wave pictures for the magazines, so stay tuned and look out for some more epic shots from Charles!
“I received my new 5m, 7m & 9m C4’s just before Christmas. What a great present to myself! I’ve used them at my local Witsands and up the East Coast.
I kite to surf so my feedback relates to wave riding with the odd jump thrown in. I think the most noticeable feature, aside from the good looks, is the constant pull I feel from these kites. Even in quite gusty winds the kites are stable and always there for you. In lighter winds the 9m was a joy to fly with a great combination of stability and responsiveness. The 7m is beautiful and the 5m is on steroids.
I kited Witsands the day after my shoot of our recent monster swell. The waves were a bit smaller but the wind a bit stronger, getting close to the 40 knot range. I had the kite half de-powered most of the time and had a great session. I did drop the kite once and because I was quite far out I decided not to let go of the kite. The lines were tangled and I got dragged through quite a few biggish waves before washing up on the sand. I was playing the kite in and out on the end of my safety leash, between waves, to help reduce the load on the kite and was very happy to find the kite was strong enough to be still in one piece. I have let some of my friends use the kites so that I can get some shots of them. Everyone loves the C4, I think you guys are in for a very successful year.